Tesla CEO Elon Musk's fortunes have faced a substantial blow as the company's shares stumbled following an analyst downgrade and disappointing quarterly reports from smaller electric vehicle rivals.
Tesla's stock price took a nosedive on Thursday, falling 5.5% to $210, after HSBC analyst Michael Tyndall initiated coverage of the stock with a sell rating and a target price of $133. Tyndall's downgrade is the latest sign that investors are becoming more cautious about Tesla's stock, which has been volatile in recent months.
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The sell rating comes at a time when Tesla is facing a number of challenges, including increasing competition from rivals, rising costs, and supply chain disruptions. The company is also facing scrutiny from regulators around the world over its self-driving technology and safety concerns.
According to Forbes Magazine, some other electric vehicle stocks are sliding, like American electric car maker stocks Rivian (shares down 10% on Thursday) and Lucid (down 5%) after the pair each reported earnings, which disappointed investors Tuesday, with each company on track to burn through billions of dollars in cash this year.
As per the Forbes valuation, Mr Musk, who owns about 13% of Tesla shares, lost $8.7 billion Thursday, a more than $7 billion larger decline than that of any other billionaire, according to Forbes' calculations. Musk remains the wealthiest person on earth with an estimated net worth of $223.7 billion, though that remains about $100 billion below his peak fortune of $320 billion achieved in November 2021, when Tesla was valued at over $1.2 trillion.